23-May-2006
- On 22 May 2006 Eurotech Environmental Limited
of Newark, Nottinghamshire pleaded guilty at Newark
Magistrates to five charges relating to storing
waste illegally.
The charges were brought by
the Environment Agency under Section 33 of the
Environmental Protection Act 11000, Pollution
Prevention Control Regulations and Special Waste
Regulations 1996. Eurotech Environmental Limited
was fined £15,000 and ordered to pay costs
of £1,000.
The Managing Director of Eurotech
Environmental Limited, Chris Banks also pleaded
guilty to four charges relating to storing waste
illegally. Mr Banks was fined £4,000 and
ordered to pay costs of £1,000.
For the Environment Agency,
Dermot Scully told the court that on 10 November
2004 Environment Agency officers visited the premises
of Eurotech Environmental Limited at Northern
Rd, Newark. The officers found a large quantity
of drums, Bulk Containers and various fuel tanks
containing waste chemicals. Some of the chemicals
in the containers included mercury, detergents,
laboratory chemicals and sodium hydroxide. Old
paints, waste fridges, batteries were also found
stored illegally on site.
At this point Mr Banks was interviewed.
Mr Banks indicated that much of the waste had
been relocated from a decommissioned unit at Brunel
Drive, where the company had previously been based
in March 2004.
The company had previously held
a Waste Management Licence at this site and were
fully aware of the need to adhere to regulations
to ensure they did not pollute the environment,
cause harm to human health or serious detriment
to local amenities
The manner in which the wastes
were being stored at the facility on Northern
Rd would not have been permitted even if a licence
had been in force. Several of the containers were
unlabelled and didn’t indicate what was inside
them, other containers were spilling their contents
on to the floor and some had no lids. Wastes were
also being stored in excess of recommended retention
times.
Speaking after the case Kath
Williams, an Environment Agency team leader involved
in the investigation said, ‘ This case really
highlights how important having and operating
within the conditions of a Waste Management Licence
is. At this site the waste segregation was inadequate
and some waste was stored on land outside without
adequate protection for the local environment,
some of the waste was left open to the elements
and on bare soil. We estimate approximately 70
tonnes of waste was being stored by Eurotech Environmental
Limited illegally, around 30 tonnes of the waste
was oil, oil contaminated water and oil sludge.’
In mitigation, Andrew Harding
said Mr Banks had been unwell and ran out of time
to empty the old unit. In desperation he moved
the controlled waste and special waste to the
new unlicensed unit.
